IKA innovation for the chemical industry

The chemical industry produces in barrels. This is why efficiency is the most important demand production facilities face. And once again IKA sets an innovative example: all of IKA machines for the chemical industry work in an energy-efficient manner. You simultaneously achieve higher productivity while requiring minimal space.

IKA finds ideal solutions even when it comes to demanding mixing tasks. The machinery's step-up from basic to high-end models allows for the customer to invest only in what he actually needs. When it comes to the conceptual design of your machine, the choice of materials conforms to the technical task. Characteristics of the substances to be processed and process parameters such as temperature and pressure are incorporated into the conceptual stage as well.

IKA offers well-priced and robust stirring devices for simple mixing tasks. A particularly impressive performance with minimal energy demand is rendered by the IKA jet stream mixer ROTOTRON. IKA dispersing machines with various rotor/stator systems are perfectly suitable for the professional production of emulsions and suspensions. Thanks to the high-performance rotor/stator systems these machines can even crush and mix generally non-mixable substances.

When it comes to powder incorporation, arguably the most demanding task of the chemical industry, IKA has developed and patented the continuous system MHD. Liquids are mixed with powders or granules, dust and lump-free in just one passage. Up to 80% solid content can be worked into the mixture during this process. The biggest machine, MHD 2000/50, is able to achieve an overall throughput of up to 40,000 l/h. As is the case with all of MHD machines, it requires its own dosing systems for a quantity-proportional feeding of the components. CMX model machines, on the other hand, manage without a dosing system and are therefore a comparably well-priced investment.

IKA innovation knows no bounds. We build machines based on your vision, even specially designed models. Naturally, we deliver ready-for-use machines with already programmed-in controllers.

Production in a batch process
Generally slurries are produced in a batch process.
It can also be made in a circulating process using an IKA® inline machine of the type MHD 2000/.., alternatively in a batch process using an IKA® ULTRA-TURRAX® UTC.
For solid concentrations exceeding 45%, the MHD machine is recommended for faster and better wetting of the solids.

Production in a continuous process
For big production quantities it is recommendable to use an inline system, in which the powders are immediately and thoroughly wetted, so that forming of lumps is avoided from the beginning. This is achieved by using an inline mixing and dispersing machine of the type IKA® MHD 2000/..

The liquid phase, e.g. water, and the bentonite powder are continuously fed into the machine and the powder is immediately wetted, disagglomerated and dispersed. Concentrations with up to 50% bentonite can be produced.

Production in a combined process
For the production of
very fine bentonite dispersions we recommend to use a combination of IKA®
ULTRA:-TURRAX® type UTC and IKA® Colloid Mill
MK 2000 or IKA® Cone Mill MKO 2000.

Production in a continuous process
In classical plants, fats are transesterified in a two-stage batch process and is normally done in two subsequent batch containers.

Using a special IKA® inline dispersing machine of the type DISPAX-REACTOR®, it's now possible to carry out the transesterification in a continuous process in one stage where raw materials are fed continuously.

The transesterification reaction takes place in the high-energetic shear zone of the dispersing machine. The raw materials are dissolved to finest droplets, by which the specific surface is enormously enlarged and the mass transfer is decisively intensified. This noticeably accelerates the transesterification reaction and maximizes the output. The complete transesterification can be carried out in one stage and fully automatic.

Production in a batch process
Car polishes are mainly produced in batches in following process steps:

Melting of the wax under slight stirring with an IKA® TURBOTRON®, at a temperature ot approx. 95°C

Addition of hot water while strongly emulsifying with an IKA® ULTRA-TURRAX® Type UTC or UTE.

Addition of the silicon oil

Add emulsifier and maybe stabilizer and continue emulsifying intensively with UTC or UTE

Slowly add abrasives like silica or similar, while stirrer and UTC are still running.

As soon as homogeneity is reached, the UTC is switched-off and only the stirrer continues running.

The mixture is cooled down to 30° - 35°C as quickly as possible.

Car polishes on an aqueous basis (approx. 60% H2O) with a higher silicon content are produced in a similar way. Their emulsification is done with a higher shear rate, thus needing a higher energy input.

Production in a circulating batch process
Production with IKA® Master Plant MP

Wax is one of the ingredients of car polish. This wax has to be either melted in a separate melting vessel, or together with the silicon oil, olein, stearic acid and maybe petroleum in the IKA® Master Plant MP mixing vessel (temperature approx. 85°C).

Pre-heated water (approx. 60°C) is mixed into this mixture, resulting in an O/W-emulsion.

Abrasives, e.g. finest ground kaolin, are added and dispersed. Finally the emulsion/suspension is cooled down to approx. 40°C.

Production in an batch process
Aqueous Carbopol® dispersions are normally produced in a batch process. Their concentrations are between 2% and 5%.
Carbopol® is a very light powder and therefore it is important to create a good vortex by means of a stirrer, e.g. IKA® ROTORON®, into which the powder is fed slowly, so that a quick wetting can take place.
After feeding of the powder, it is recommendable to let the stirrer run slowly for a certain time in order to de-aerate and neutralise and to soak still existing fish eyes.
The batch is often left overnight and stirred again shortly before using it.
Compared to the use of normal stirrers an important time reduction can be reached using an IKA® ULTRA-TURRAX®.

Dilution in an inline process
When water and ether sulphate are brought together, e.g. in a beaker, you will see that gel lumps are formed even under stirring, which are very difficult to be solved. It is therefore very important in a dilution process that water and ether sulphate are kept apart as long as possible i.e. until they directly reach the mixing tool, so that there does not remain any time for gel formation.
A high shear rate and shear frequency, as e.g. in the IKA® DISPAX-REACTOR®; drastically shorten the molecular chain of the ether sulphate. This creates enough surface for the water to settle down, resulting in a dilution of low viscosity.
The dilution plant type DPV designed by IKA® is working as an inline system, i.e. both phases are continuously fed to the DISPAX-REACTOR® by means of dosing pumps. During just one passage a concentration of approx. 70% is diluted to a clear product, free of air bubbles and pinholes, with a concentration of approx. 28%.
This way of production also offers the advantage, that big storage and mixing vessels are no more necessary. Any requested quantity can be diluted within short time and made available for further process steps. On demand a preservative may be added to the water inlet by a dosing pump.
The electric control can be designed acc. to the customer's requirements. Special attention has to be drawn to the sequence of switching on and off.
In a clever arrangement the dilution plant can even be used for further mixing, dilution and homogenizing of the final products like e.g. liquid detergents and similar.
The plant is available for capacities up to approx. 30 t/h

Production in a batch process
The esterquat is heated in a dosing vessel up to 50°C and stirred at the same time by means of an anchor stirrer, in order to improve the heat exchange.

In the mixing vessel, water is heated to 50 - 55°C and convected by means of a jet tube agitator, e.g. type IKA® ROTOTRON®, at half speed for better heat distribution. As soon as the set temperatures are reached, the esterquat is added and the speed of the jet tube agitator is increased to the maximum.

Esterquat and water are mixed until a stable viscosity is achieved. This can be seen from the power consumption.

Production in a circulating batch processProduction with IKA Master Plant

Depending on the type of wood and its surface condition, i.e. treated or untreated, different recipes are used. Hereafter we describe a general recipe and its production procedure.

Since it is nearly always necessary to heat at the beginning of the process and to cool at its end, the IKA® Master Plant is a very suitable machine and the process can look as follows:

approx. 75 parts of a special naphta mixture are heated to 50°C

approx. 5 parts of polymer SL are solved in this mixture,

then approx. 4 parts of silicon oil,

approx. 10 parts of isopropanol,

approx. 5 parts of pine oil and

approx. 1 part of emulsifier are mixed in.

Additionally to the vessel, the agitator is also heated for an optimum temperature guiding. The mixing and dispersing machine IKA® DBI 2000 is working at half speed and the temperature is constantly kept at 50°C.

For recipes containing waxes, the process is started with a melting temperature between 70° and 120°C. After all ingredients have been added, the mixture has to be cooled down to approx. 35°C. At this temperature the polish is still flowing, but nevertheless well stabilised.

Production in a batch-process
Coding inks are generally produced in batches., not regarding whether the basis, i.e. the continuous phase, is a solvent or water. Since the solids, like pigments and maybe also the polymer, are already finest ground and available in form of agglomerates, the dispersing process only disagglomerates and homogenizes. This process is effected on the one hand in the shear gap between rotor and stator and on the other hand by producing massive turbulences at the outlet slots of the stator.
As for all dispersing processes, care has to be taken for a temperature limitation, especially when using solvents, i.e. double jacketed vessels should be used and maybe also stirrers that can be cooled like in the IKA® Master Plant. This plant also enables a submerse feeding of pigments, resins and predispersed solids directly into the mixing chamber of the dispersing machine.
In case the pigment agglomerates are extremely stable, an IKA® Colloid Mill MK 2000 can be incorporated at the bottom of the mixing vessel instead of the DBI 2000.

Preparation in an inline process
Vegetable oils are processed in following steps:

A) Degumming
Part of the phosphatides in the raw oil are hydrogenizable with water and can thus easily be separated. The remaining non-hydrogenizable phosphatides can be separated by adding acid.
The untreated oil is heated up to 60°C - 70°C and thoroughly mixed with up to 1% of phosphoric acid. The acid is reacting with the phosphatides, thus enabling a settlement of the water. The phosphatides can then be separated by filtration or centrifuging. This results in a "degummed" oil and gum resin, from which, under certain conditions, lecithin can be produced. For a thorough mixing of acid and oil, the IKA® dispersing machine of the type DISPAX-REACTOR® DR 2000 proved to be very suitable.

B) Neutralization
Free fatty acids (FFA) are influencing the taste of the oil and accelerate its spoiling. For neutralization of the FFA the oil is intensively mixed with sodium hydroxide at a temperature of approx. 90° to 100°C. The FFA are settling as soaps and can be separated by centrifuging. The DISPAX-REACTOR® DR 2000 as well as the single stage dispersing machine of the type ULTRA-TURRAX® UTL 2000 proved to be the right machines for the neutralization of FFA.

C) Bleaching
In order to remove remaining impurities like colour and oxidation products the oil can finally be bleached. For this purpose it is intensively mixed with bleaching clay. For this process we recommend the IKA® inline mixing and dispersing machine of the type MHD 2000.

Production in a batch process
The production process may look as follows:

- Generation of a wax melt in a melting vessel, maybe also with a certain content of resins like balsamic resin and a non-ionic emulsifier at a temperature of approx. 110°C, under stirring with a disk stirrer at moderate speed.
- This melt is emulsified into potassium hydroxide containing water of approx. 90°C and at the same time cooled down to 60 - 70°C. A hardener may be added. In order to improve the polishing capacities and as a protection against humidity, 5 vol% of the water can be substituted by a silicone emulsion. If necessary, a preservative can be added.
For stabilizing the emulsion can be cooled down to approx. 50°C, as long as the flow behaviour is not too much impaired.
As emulsifying machines we recommend IKA® ULTRA-TURRAX® UTC or IKA® DISPAX-REACTOR® DR 2000 for a circulating batch process.

It is recommended first to make a preparation with little water (approx.
15%) and to produce a gel-like emulsion. The suitable machine for this purpose
is a colloid mill of the type IKA® MK 2000 with a stronger
motor (approx. 30 kW, 1.000 l/h). Moreover it has to be worked with high shear
gradient.

As soon as a homogeneous, transparent and very viscous mixture is reached,
any requested viscosity can be adjusted by further mixing in of water and
emulsifier.

Production in a batch process
Talcum has a very low apparent weight, i.e. it tends to swim on the surface
of the water and to form lumps. Therefore one should try to incorporate and
wet the powder as quickly as possible. The right machine for this purpose
is the IKA® mixing and dispersing machine of type MHD 2000/....
In case of very high concentrations an additional wetting aid is used to change
the surface tension of one phase.

Production in a batch process
Underseal dispersions
have very different compositions. Nevertheless, the basis for their production
are always vinyl compounds, which are rather viscous and have to be mixed
first. Depending on the rheology, softeners and maybe even organic solvents
are added, before all other components, especially the treated calcium carbonate,
and maybe other fillers, pigments and so on are mixed in.

Since all solids already have a very small grain size, homogeneous repartition
is the main aim. This is reached using a stirrer with toothed disk, e.g.
an IKA®-TURBOTRON®, or the IKA®-ULTA-TURRAX®
as "batch" or "inline" machine.

We use cookies on our website. Some are necessary, while others help us to improve the website and its functionality for you. You can accept them or adjust your cookie settings. You can find more information in our Privacy Policy.